Topic: Social Contagion

Mike Benz discusses DARPA-funded research into "Slaying the Online Hate Hydra," which sought to prevent the "martyr effect" when high-profile figures are censored. The research, which grew out of Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street monitoring, suggested targeting "lieutenants" and smaller accounts rather than just the primary figure. This strategy was designed to dismantle populist networks without triggering a massive public backlash against overt censorship.

Blair White critiques the "trans or dead" false dichotomy used by activists and medical professionals to pressure parents into transitioning their children. She describes the current wave of transgender identification as a "social contagion" fueled by TikTok and pandemic-related mental health issues.

Helen Joyce, an economist and author, discusses the "social contagion" of transgenderism. She argues that parents who have allowed their children to undergo permanent medical transitions will never admit they were wrong because the psychological cost of acknowledging the harm is too high.